Boston Bruins return from All-Star break in first place, but amidst uncertainty

Monday

Jan 31, 2011 at 12:01 AMJan 31, 2011 at 8:44 AM

The health of Bruins center Marc Savard will be a major factor for the remainder of the season. An effective replacement, and continued strong play from Tim Thomas, Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron, are critical.

Mike Loftus

And they’re off – again. One practice, one plane ride, and the Boston Bruins resume their 2010-11 season Tuesday night at Carolina for the first of 32 games – 16 home, 16 away – remaining before the regular season ends April 10.

They’re in good shape – first place in the division is never bad, right? – although not necessarily in great shape. There’s only a four-point gap between the Bruins and second-place Montreal in the Northeast Division, and the Canadiens hit the break seventh in the Eastern Conference, only three points above the playoff line. In other words, it wouldn’t take much of a slump for Boston to suddenly find itself fighting to survive into the postseason.

The uncertain status of center Marc Savard, who spent All-Star break at home in Ontario with a moderate concussion, clouds Boston’s post-break forecast more than anything.

Record-wise, there hasn’t been a huge difference between the Bruins with their three-time scoring leader (14-6-5, .667) and without him (14-9-2, .600), but logic suggested that the better Savard played – and his play had begun to improve after missing 25 games with post-concussion syndrome symptoms – the more difficulty opponents would face in defending against the Bruins.

A long enough absence could leave him back where he was when he returned at the start of December, and it could take as long for him to find his game. Given the fact Savard has suffered two significant concussions in less than a year, the Bruins have to have considered the possibility that they could spend the rest of the year without him.

The next month, therefore, becomes critical.

The B’s have two centers enjoying excellent seasons in Patrice Bergeron (16-24–40), who is now atop the depth chart, and Gregory Campbell (7-11– 18), who anchors an extremely effective fourth line. Then there’s David Krejci (7-26–33), who can – and must – be a more consistent presence for the rest of the season.

There are still significant minutes left for a third center, and decent wingers on the roster for that center to skate between. It should be a line that’s a threat to score, not a line that considers production a bonus.

Tyler Seguin, who didn’t score a point in his last eight games before the break (most of them at wing) has so far been given the opportunity to center the third line. Whether it’s fair to a 19-year-old rookie or not (today’s his birthday, by the way), the season has reached a point where Seguin has to earn the right to keep that job, or give it up and either play another position, or on another line. In a perfect world, Seguin plays full-time no matter what, but Savard’s injury makes the Bruins’ world less perfect, and with relatively little time to improve it.

Potential options include sliding Blake Wheeler from wing to center (it’s been done this year, when Krejci was out with a concussion), moving Campbell up the chart and dropping somebody else, or promoting a prospect from Providence (American Hockey League). At present, that would probably be Zach Hamill, the 2007 first-round choice who has shaken off a slow start to his third pro season. Hamill scored 12 points in 15 games in January.

If nothing has come close to working, Savard isn’t close to coming back and the B’s are still reasonably assured of a playoff berth, these are the options: Boston can see what’s available on or before the Feb. 28 trade deadline, or go the route Montreal took all the way to the conference finals last year: Ride goaltending and defense, and hope there’s enough goals to go around.

For all the unexpected contributions of players like Campbell, Shawn Thorton and rookies Brad Marchand, Steven Kampfer and Adam McQuaid, all the disappointments (notably Nathan Horton, who has only scored one goal in his last 20 games, and to a lesser extent Tuukka Rask’s 4-10-1 record), and the sometimes-up, sometimes-down performances of many players throughout the rest of the lineup, the Bruins are where they are because Tim Thomas has been the NHL’s best goalie, Zdeno Chara – despite his many detractors – has had an excellent year, and Bergeron is having a tremendous two-way season.

They’ve become the Bruins’ version of a Big 3, and if they play at or close to their current levels through the end of the year, Boston shouldn’t have much trouble earning a fourth straight playoff berth.

Who is playing for them at that point, and how they’re playing, will determine how long they’ll last after that.

Reach Mike Loftus at mloftus@ledger.com. Read more of his Bruins coverage on Blog of Ice at PatriotLedger.com/sports Read more playoff stories

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